Royal Flashback of the Day: Edward and Sophie's Windsor Wedding

The wedding of the Earl and Countess of Wessex in 1999 might be a good prototype for what we'll see later this month...or it might not, because who knows?! But still, it was a televised royal wedding at St. George's Chapel that was not a state occasion and included a carriage ride through Windsor, so at least some of the circumstances are similar. Let's look back...

One immediate difference: Edward and Sophie chose to hold their wedding a little later in the day, so the ladies wore longer dresses and ditched the hats (mostly; the Queen had a headpiece and the Queen Mother wore a hat anyway) so they were ready for the evening party. The couple played up their wedding venue with capes echoing the famous Garter robes for the children in the bridal party, which was super cute.

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Sophie wore a necklace and earrings designed by Prince Edward and a tiara on loan from the Queen, which hadn't been seen before that day and was made or altered for her from existing pieces. The bride's ensemble was by designer Samantha Shaw and included a coat with a train over a dress. The wedding gown was made of ivory silk organza with tulle and silk crepe, adorned with pearls and cut-glass beads.

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There's the dress that was underneath, worn on its own as the couple left for their honeymoon. Very similar, but maybe I like this even more than what we saw at the ceremony?